by Casey J. Bastian
When a crime is committed, it is vital that the actual perpetrator be identified and held accountable. However, that process is not always straightforward. Every criminal investigation begins with the analysis of a crime scene and the collection of forensic evidence. But crime is inherently complex. ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Court of Appeal of California, First Appellate District, held that “a trial court cannot deny relief in a § 1170.95 proceeding based on findings that are inconsistent with a previous acquittal when no evidence other than that introduced at trial is presented.”
In 2004, a jury ...
by John & Nisha Whitehead
“He sees you when you’re sleeping
He knows when you’re awake
He knows when you’ve been bad or good
So be good for goodness’ sake!”
— “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town”
You’d better watch out — you’d better not pout — you’d better ...
by Anthony W. Accurso
The Supreme Court of Montana ruled a state trooper impermissibly extended a traffic stop to investigate a drug possession based solely on the odor of marijuana and undeveloped hunches.
William James Harning was driving a truck full of ceramics to an art show around 10:00 a.m. ...
by Douglas Ankney
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that nine people in a vehicle with a rated capacity for seven people is insufficient for imposition of sentencing enhancement under U.S. Sentencing Guideline (“Guidelines”) § 2 L1.1(b)(6).
Felipe Castelo-Palma was pulled over by a Presidio ...
by Jacob Barrett
The Court of Appeal of California, Fourth Appellate District, reiterated the kill zone theory principles set forth by the California Supreme Court in People v. Canizales, 442 P.3d 686 (Cal. 2019), and held that Canizales applies retroactively to judgments that were final at the time Canizales ...
by David M. Reutter
The Supreme Court of Florida held that for purposes of § 893.135(1), Florida Statutes, a completed drug trafficking by purchase “requires proof that the defendant both (1) gave consideration for and (2) obtained control of a trafficking quantity of illegal drugs.” The Court also instructed that ...
by Jayson Hawkins
Modern society puts tremendous value on innovations that make our jobs easier, and computers have certainly aided in that pursuit. Cops in India, however, have taken the idea of using computers to minimize effort to a new extreme by planting evidence on people’s computers and then arresting ...
by David M. Reutter
In a case of first impression, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held that a Fulton County, Georgia, assistant district attorney is not entitled to absolute prosecutorial immunity in a 42 U.S.C. § 1983 suit for failing to ensure the cancellation or recall ...
by Harold Hempstead
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held that the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana erred in finding that a Fourth Amendment stop did not occur when “deputies flagged down [Neguel A.] Morris’s car, or when they ordered him to get ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts held that an actual conflict of interest existed that rendered counsel’s representation constitutionally ineffective where defense counsel erroneously believed he had an ethical duty to disclose to the prosecution the location of key incriminating evidence. Defendant Will Tate’s consent to the ...
by Jayson Hawkins
In March 2022, the Los Angeles Police Commission, an oversight board of the LAPD, implemented minor policy changes to the way the department conducts pretextual stops. According to the Los Angeles Times, officers “can no longer use minor violations as an excuse to investigate motorists, bicyclists ...
by Benjamin Tschirhart
Ask the average person how the police department of a major city could best use $300,000, and they might suggest investing in de-escalation training, mental health crisis response, or teaching officers how to distinguish cell phones from firearms.
Ask the same question of a high-dollar police department ...
by David M. Reutter
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held that the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming committed plain error in applying the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines (“Guidelines”) by making an unreasonable determination in the downward variance it imposed.
Before the Court was the ...
by Douglas Ankney
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington’s order granting a motion to suppress all evidence because the arresting officer lacked probable cause to arrest a possibly mentally ill Washington man who had displayed a ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Court of Appeal of California, Fourth Appellate District, held that the Sexually Violent Predator Act, Welf. & Inst. Code § 6600 et seq. (“SVPA”), does not authorize the People to retain a private expert witness to testify at trial in connection with an SVPA petition. (Note: ...
by Douglas Ankney
In an issue of first impression with potentially nationwide implications, the Supreme Court of Connecticut held that a “John Doe” warrant that was based on the general description of a suspect and on several mixed partial DNA profiles, which may or may not have included the suspect’s ...
by Douglas Ankney
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held that a prisoner convicted of a covered drug offense but who was sentenced to a mandatory life sentence via a cross reference for murder under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines (“Guidelines”) in effect before United States v. Booker ...
by Harold Hempstead
In the beginning of July 2022, New York City Mayor Eric Adams and the City’s Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Jason Graham announced at a press conference that NYC is opening the nation’s very first DNA “gun crimes unit at a public DNA crime laboratory.”
The two-and-a-half million ...
by Matt Clarke
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that the sentence of a convicted bank robber who did not have a gun, did not touch, bind, tie up, or lock up bank employees and did not tell them to move to another location could not ...
by Casey J. Bastian
Forensic experts have been conducting ballistics comparisons and presenting their testimony in courts for more than 100 years. Experts frequently imply that accurately identifying that a specific gun fired a particular bullet is straightforward: Simply search for distinctive marks on a bullet made by the barrel ...
by Casey J. Bastian
The National Registry of Exonerations (“NRE”) recorded a total of 226 exonerations in 2021. Of these, 161 were discovered in 2021. The remaining 65 were discovered in previous years, only being recorded by the NRE in 2021. Each of the 161 persons exonerated spent an average ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ended the practice of judges presiding over juvenile delinquency proceedings and granting continuances for the sole purpose of extending the delinquent’s period of incarceration.
A juvenile identified as “Noah N.” was 17-years-of-age when he allegedly punched and bit a family or ...
by Kevin W. Bliss
A recent study showed that many vendors of hemp products legal under the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, commonly known as the 2018 Farm Bill, actually carry a chemical makeup of higher than 0.3% of tetrahydrocannabinol (“THC”), classifying it as marijuana, a Schedule I controlled substance. ...
by Casey J. Bastian
In our adversarial court systems, a person impaneled on a jury is tasked with a seemingly straight-forward duty: determine the reliability and credibility of trial evidence, deliberate, and render a decision. However, studies reveal that this process is not so simple. Jurors are often irrational — ...
by Casey J. Bastian
“Not a lot of people are aware of this public-private partnership where corporations and wealthy donors are able to siphon money into police forces with little to no oversight.” — Gin Armstrong, senior research analyst at LittleSis.
Police foundations are private organizations that engage in ...
by Douglas Ankney
With the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973), news pundits and left-leaning politicians decry the “radical” justices on the U.S. Supreme Court as if the High Court’s utter disrespect for the freedom guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution is a recent development. Beginning ...
by Casey J. Bastian
The FBI has identified Charlotte, North Carolina, as a drug trafficking hub because it has “multiple interstates running directly through” it. The FBI claims that this makes the Queen City an “appealing” route to traffickers delivering product and transferring cash “up and down the East Coast.” ...
Loaded on
Jan. 15, 2023
published in Criminal Legal News
February, 2023, page 50
Alabama: WBMA in Birmingham reported that a former probation officer in Fayette County was convicted of sexual misconduct on Dec. 8, 2022. The former officer, Michael Steven Painter, 51, was found guilty on charges of using his office for personal gain and custodial sexual misconduct — the trial lasted ...
by Jacob Barrett
In 2019, Kansas enacted a law that requires police agencies to accurately track and report amounts seized from property forfeitures — known as civil asset forfeiture. As of 2022, more than half of the police agencies have failed to do so.
Under the law, the Kansas Bureau ...
